Ed Belfour was getting his daily treatment in the trainers room yesterday when word trickled in that he'd been chosen NHL defensive player of the week.

Looks like all that tender loving care being paid to his unpredictable back is working, doesn't it?

No goaltender enters the playoffs on a bigger roll than Belfour, who was honoured for going 3-0-0 with a 0.67 goals-against average, a .971 save percentage and two shutouts.

Belfour, 38, has not allowed a goal during the past 174 minutes 28 seconds dating back to the first period of the Maple Leafs' 4-2 victory over the Atlanta Thrashers on March 29.

TOUGH ON SENS

As Belfour goes, so go the Leafs. And if you are an Ottawa Senators player or fan, that is not good news.

In four outings against the Sens this season, Belfour allowed just four goals. That includes a 6-0 blanking of the Sens at the Corel Centre on Saturday, a shutout that gave him a career high of 10.

You can see why many prognosticators feel Belfour is the most decisive edge the Leafs have over the Sens.

(Eddie's) a big-time player, a big-game player and he'll be there when it counts," Joe Nieuwendyk, who won a Stanley Cup with Belfour with the Dallas Stars in 1999, said. "It gives you a lot of confidence to know he's back there."